Multi-layered contoured mattress

ABSTRACT

A multi-layered foam mattress including a lower layer having a contoured upper surface, a relatively rigid intermediate layer having a contoured lower surface engaging the contoured upper surface of the lower layer, there further being provided a resilient upper layer having a lower surface contoured and engaging the contoured upper surface of the relatively rigid intermediate layer, with all of the contoured surfaces having an inverted shape as compared to the human body resting on top of the mattress so that the mattress will tend to straighten the body.

United States Patent 1 Regan 1 1 MULTI-LAYERED CONTOURED MATTRESS [76]Inventor: John J. Regan, 2316 N. Harlem Ave., Elmwood Park, 111. 6063522 Filed: Mar. 26, I973 21 App]. No; 344,594

[52] U.S. Cl. 5/345 R; 5/355; 5/361 B; 297/452 [51] Int. Cl. A47c 23/00;A47c 27/00; A47c 7/02 [58] Field of Search 5/DIG. 1, 345, 355, 361 R,5/361 B, 91, 345 R; 297/452, DIG. 1

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,469,084 5/1949 Schenker5/345 R 3,111,345 11/1963 Peras 297/455 3,118,153 1/1964 I-Iood 5/345 R3,608,106 9/1971 Parramon 5/345 R 3,629,882 12/1971 Throne .1 5/345 R n3,885,258 May 27, 1975 3,642,323 2/1972 Taylor 297/DIG. 1

Primary ExaminerPau1 R. Gilliam Assistant Examiner-Andrew M. CalvertAttorney, Agent, or Firm-Wegner, Stellman, McCord, Wiles & Wood [5 7ABSTRACT A multi-layered foam mattress including a lower layer having acontoured upper surface, a relatively rigid intermediate layer having acontoured lower surface engaging the contoured upper surface of thelower layer, there further being provided a resilient upper layer havinga lower surface contoured and engaging the contoured upper surface ofthe relatively rigid intermediate layer, with all of the contouredsurfaces having an inverted shape as compared to the human body restingon top of the mattress so that the mattress will tend to straighten thebody.

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1 MULTI-LAYERED CONTOURED MATTRESS BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTIONThere have in the past been provided so-called increased comfort" bodysupporting or bed structures for increasing the beneficial results ofhuman sleep. Some of these have taken the form of various vibratingelements, while others have taken the form of various fluidized bedsthat conform to the contour of the body to give the user a pleasantfeeling. Many of these prior attempts, however, have not been designedto overcome the neurological problems associated with sleep thereforehave not achieved the results of improving the benefits of humanconsciousness or unconsciousness of the sleeping condition.

There have been many theoretical analyses of the sleeping condition. Asa result of my studies, I have concluded, to a large extent, humandreams result from a stimulation of the mind by sensory impulsesreceived during sleep. These impulses originate from movement of thebody, pressure on the body or internal bodily disturbances. Thus, thesensory impulses which stimulate dreams have for the most part beenassociated with a bodily feeling of irritation that might go unnoticedbecause it is not very strong. This theory can even be reduced to aparticular part of the body as being the source of the sorenessstimulating the dream.

Thus, the motor responses and the character of the dreams produced inhuman sleep can be traced to sensory impluses produced by physicaldiscomforts incurred during sleep.

Dreams come in degrees or stages. If one set of dream thoughts do notget a motor reaction, they will continue to increase in activity untilthere is a reaction. These dreams go from the mildest to the bazaar, tothe violent, to the defensive, and to the aggressive. Some peoplerequire different degrees of dream intensities to get them to respond ina motive of manner. The physical condition of the patient does in alllikelihood have a great deal of control over the intensity of the dreamrequired to get a motor response to remove some physical discomfort.

During sleep the mind receives these sensory impulses from any part ofthe body that is not performing normally. It also responds, in someinstances, when the body is performing normally. If a person ate beforegoing to bed, the mind can be receiving sensory impulses from thedigestive area, and this would be the stimulus for the dreams. Inrecognizing the sleeping and dreaming phenomena, I have concluded thatif the sensory disturbances can be minimized by alleviating theirritating pressures that create them, a person could considerablyimprove sleep.

In accordance with the present invention, this has been accomplished byproviding a body supporting structure in which the patient can havemaximum comfort while maintaining his body in a straight condition,reducing the sensory signals and thus producing a controlled sleep withmaximum rest.

Although it has been recognized that mattresses must have resiliency andmany vary in texture to establish this resiliency, they fail torecognize that it is desirable to support different parts of the body indifferent manners to reduce strain on the body.

It has been suggested in the past to provide contouring of mattresses.The prior art contouring techniques have not to a significant extentminimized the problems of providing proper supporting pressures by amattress for particular parts of the body. That is the prior artconstructions tend to support more heavily the wrong parts of the bodyincreasing user discomfort.

Firstly, it is basically necessary to achieve maximum user comfort andto straighten the body during sleep, by designing a mattressconstruction in which the resiliency varies significantly across thesurface of the mattress to provide the proper support.

One essential criterion that must be followed to minimize irritations isto avoid hammocking of the body while it is in a reclined position.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention amultilayered foam mattress is provided that has different degrees ofresiliency across the surface of the mattress to minimize bodyirritations and to straighten the body during sleep by providing supportat the proper bodily areas. This is achieved through the provision ofvariable resiliency across the surface of the mattress combined with aninverted contour in the multilayered structure.

The term inverted contour is defined as a contour or wave shape that isa physical inversion from the shape of the body lying on the mattress.That is when the human body lies on a mattress. the shoulders andbuttocks tend to be the heavy pressure points depressing the mattressthe most. In the present construction the contour of the mattress or oneof its layers rises at the buttocks and the shoulders, rather thanlowers as in prior art constructions, tending to straighten the body andminimize bodily irritations.

Toward this end and in one embodiment of the present invention athree-layered mattress construction is provided having an intermediaterigid layer with the inverted contour shape described above. In anotherembodiment of the present invention the intermediate layer is defined bya plurality of rigid cross members together defining the same invertedcontour.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a longitudinal section of amattress construction accordingto one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section of the mattress construction as shownin FIG. 1 without a human body resting thereon;

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal section of a mattress construction according toanother embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross section of a mattress constructionaccording to still another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS According to thedrawings and in particular FIGS. 1 and 2, a multi-layered foam rubbermattress according to the present invention is shown supported on thebed frame 12.

The mattress 10 has a foam rubber lower layer 12 having a relativelygreat resiliency. The lower layer 12 has an upper surface 13 having apredetermined contour.

A relatively rigid intermediate rubber layer 14 is provided having alower surface 16 with a contour corresponding to the contour of lowerlayer surface 13 and an upper surface 18 having approximately the samecontour as the surfaces 13 and 16. A top layer 20 is provided, also afoam rubber material that may have the same resiliency as layer 12 or adifferent resiliency, depending upon the desired characteristics of themulti-layered mattress 10. The top layer has a flat upper surface 22with no pressure placed on top of the mattress. As shown in FIG. 1 thehuman body 24 is illustrated in a reclining position, on the mattress10.

The contour of the intermediate layer 14 and thus the contour ofsurfaces 13, 16 and 18 are seen to undulate in the reverse manner ofundulation of the human body. This is what is referred to as theinverted contour defined above. Thus at the users calf, the intermediatelayer undulates upwardly as seen at 25, at the users buttocks theintermediate layer 14 is seen to undulate upwardly as indicated at 26,at the users upper back the intermediate layer is seen to undulateupwardly as at 28 and at the users head the intermediate layer 14 isseen to undulate upwardly as indicated at 29. Thus at the points of thehuman body that tend to depress the mattress the most, a greaterresistant force is provided by the mattress construction tending tostraighten out the human body and provide a much greater comfort insleeping.

In FIG. 3 a still further embodiment of the present invention is shownwherein a mattress 50 is illustrated consisting of a foam rubber lowerlayer 52 having an upper contoured surface 53. An upper layer 56 isprovided having a lower surface 57 contoured to correspond with thecontoured surface 53 and an upper surface 59, also contoured in asimilar fashion to surfaces 53 and 57. The upper layer 56 is also foamrubber material having a greater stiffness than the lower layer 52. Thisprovides the varying degrees of resiliency across the surface of themattress desired. The wave shape of the upper layer 56 has the sameinverted contour as in the FIGS. 1 and 2 embodiment.

A still further embodiment is shown in FIG. 4 as seen to be a mattress60 having a foam rubber lower layer 61 with an upper surface 62 beingcontoured. Resting on the upper surface 62 are rigid cross members 63that are separate from one another and extend completely transverselyacross the mattress. An upper layer 65 is provided also constructed offoam rubber but having a different resiliency than the lower layer 61 toprovide for varying resiliency mattress. The cross members 63 across themattress arranged in the same inverted contour as that shown in FIGS. 1,2 and 3 embodiments.

I claim:

1. A mattress body support, comprising: a bottom resilient layer havinga contoured upper surface;

an intermediate layer having a greater firmness than said first layerand being of lesser thickness, said intermediate layer having upper andlower contoured surfaces corresponding to contour of the first layer,said upper and lower contours undulating upwardly at the users head,shoulders, buttocks and calves; and

a top layer having greater resilience than said intermediate layer andhaving a substantially flat upper surface and a lower surface having acontour corresponding to the contour of the upper surface of theintermediate layer, all of said contoured surfaces having a wave-likeshape that is a physical inversion of the shape of a human body, forsupporting a human body over its entire length on the upper surface ofthe top layer in a level condition.

2. A mattress body support as defined in claim 1, wherein said bottomand top layers are a resilient foam material, and said intermediatelayer is comprised of a relatively rigid rubber material.

3. A mattress body support as defined in claim 1, wherein said top layerupper surface is a body engaging surface.

4. A foam mattress, comprising:

a bottom layer having a first resiliency, said bottom layer having acontoured upper surface, a top layer on said bottom layer having aresiliency differing from the resiliency of the bottom layer, said toplayer having two substantially identical contoured surfacescorresponding to the contour of the upper surface of the bottom layer;and

the upper surface of said two identical contoured surfaces of said toplayer is a body-engaging surface of said foam mattress, said uppersurface of the two identical contoured surfaces undulating upwardly atthe point of contact with the users head, shoulders, buttocks andcalves, all of said contours being a physical inversion of the shape ofa human body, for supporting a human body over its entire length on theupper surface of the top layer in a level condition.

5. A mattress, comprising:

a bottom layer of foam material having a first resiliency, said bottomlayer having a contoured upper surface;

a plurality of elongated rigid members extending transversely acrosssaid bottom layer upper surface;

a top layer having a resiliency different from the resiliency of thebottom layer, said top layer having a lower contoured surface engagingsaid transverse members; and

all of said contoured surfaces being a physical inversion of the shapeof a human body, for supporting 'a human body over its entire length onthe upper surface of the top layer in a level condition, said contoursurfaces including high points undulating upwardly at the users head,shoulders, buttocks and calves.

6. A mattress as defined in claim 5, wherein said top face, saidelongated rigid members forming an intermediate layer of said mattress.

1. A mattress body support, comprising: a bottom resilient layer havinga contoured upper surface; an intermediate layer having a greaterfirmness than said first layer and being of lesser thickness, saidintermediate layer having upper and lower contoured surfacescorresponding to contour of the first layer, said upper and lowercontours undulating upwardly at the user''s head, shoulders, buttocksand calves; and a top layer having greater resilience than saidintermediate layer and having a substantially flat upper surface and alower surface having a contour corresponding to the contour of the uppersurface of the intermediate layer, all of said contoured surfaces havinga wave-like shape that is a physical inversion of the shape of a humanbody, for supporting a human body over its entire length on the uppersurface of the top layer in a level condition.
 2. A mattress bodysupport as defined in claim 1, wherein said bottom and top layers are aresilient foam material, and said intermediate layer is comprised of arelatively rigid rubber material.
 3. A mattress body support as definedin claim 1, wherein said top layer upper surface is a body engagingsurface.
 4. A foam mattress, comprising: a bottom layer having a firstresiliency, said bottom layer having a contoured upper surface, a toplayer on said bottom layer having a resiliency differing from theresiliency of the bottom layer, said top layer having two substantiallyidentical contoured surfaces corresponding to the contour of the uppersurface of the bottom layer; and the upper surface of said two identicalcontoured surfaces of said top layer is a body-engaging surface of saidfoam mattress, said upper surface of the two identical contouredsurfaces undulating upwardly at the point of contact with the user''shead, shoulders, buttocks and calves, all of said contours being aphysical inversion of the shape of a human body, for supporting a humanbody over its entire length on the upper surface of the top layer in alevel condition.
 5. A mattress, comprising: a bottom layer of foammaterial having a first resiliency, said bottom layer having a contouredupper surface; a plurality of elongated rigid members extendingtransversely across said bottom layer upper surface; a top layer havinga resiliency different from the resiliency of the bottom layer, said toplayer having a lower contoured surface engaging said transverse members;and all of said contoured surfaces being a physical inversion of theshape of a human body, for supporting a human body over its entirelength on the upper surface of the top layer in a level condition, saidcontour surfaces including high points undulating upwardly at theuser''s head, shoulders, buttocks and calves.
 6. A mattress as definedin claim 5, wherein said top layer is foam rubber material and has aflat upper surface, said elongated rigid members forming an intermediatelayer of said mattress.